Lynd Corporate Goes to Dallas Farmers Market

Residents of Lynd’s Farmers Market Residential (shaded area right) will have views overlooking Dallas Farmers Market and the downtown skyline.

In 2015, the Dallas Farmers Market launched into a major renovation to capitalize on the success of its tax increment finance district (TIF).

For years, developers have been taking advantage of TIF credits to bring urban housing to an area within the TIF district that is northeast of the Farmers Market. By 2015, the Farmers Market TIF was able to boast having the largest housing concentration in the central business district.

Encouraged by this growth, City Council agreed to increase the Farmers Market’s annual budget by $14.4 million to implement a new master plan designed to increase space for farmers, add retail, parking and a community garden, and launch a mixed-use development that would surround the market with residential.

Harvest Lofts, a 240-unit high-density apartment building, broke ground in late 2015 and became the most prominent landmark within the TIF due to its immediate proximity to the Farmers Market.

The recently completed Harvest Lofts is a key component of the Farmers Market’s master plan. The Lynd project will be larger by 57 units.

San Antonio-based Lynd Corporate noticed. Like San Antonio’s Pearl and its evolution, the reinvented Farmers Market is a unique and historically significant landmark that is still adjacent to undervalued properties. It is a popular draw for locals and tourists and a smart master plan can only enhance it.

On Jan. 13, Lynd Development Partners, a division of the company, quietly closed on six parcels of land under the name FM Cadiz Owners LP. The assembled lots create a single rectangular area that is roughly one-third of a city block. The total area came to 1.34 acres.

The price was undisclosed, however, the combined appraisal values total about $2.35 million.

The property is immediately west of Harwood Street, which is the TIF boundary, so Lynd won’t benefit from the district’s tax credit financing.

The Lynd project is just outside the boundary of the Farmers Market TIF.

According to city and other government records, Lynd is planning a 452,846-square-foot development that will include a five-story residential tower and an adjacent four-story parking garage.

Feb. 28 applications for building permits reveal that the residential building will have a footprint of just over 61,400 square feet and 297 units. The total estimated cost is $32.5 million.

Thomas Mushroom & Specialty Produce occupies a brick and metal building at the corner of Cadiz and Harwood. They’ll be finding a new home since that building must be demolished. A vacant brick building at Cadiz and Park will also be knocked down.

Construction is estimated to begin in June and reach completion by December 2018, according to state records.

For Dallasites wondering about Lynd-they haven’t had much of a presence in North Texas. This is a family-owned business and one of the larger residential developers and property managers in the country. They own about 35,000 multifamily units in 16 states and have been ranked one of the Top 50 management firms in the country by the National Multifamily Housing Council (37th in 2016).

Lynd also has a reputation as a conscientious corporate citizen. They give to many charities and were Johnny-on-the-spot during Hurricane Katrina, organizing donations of necessities and providing housing to New Orleans area residents left homeless in the storm’s aftermath.